New York 'last responder' reflects on pandemic year

As coronavirus deaths piled up in New York last spring, overnight undertaker Jesus Pujols hardly slept.

When he did, it was often in the van he used to transport the deceased.

The 24-year-old works for a Brooklyn funeral home that at one point had nearly 500 people in its care, a backlog unresolved until June.

His work weeks stretched past 80 hours, but he struggled most after-hours.

"I ended up having like a mental condition because I didn't sleep," he said, describing his condition as "borderline schizophrenic."

Doctors told Pujols he was experiencing hypnagogic hallucinations — a term for imagined perceptions that occur as sleep sets in.

Therapy helped, and so did religion. Pujols now carries a notepad to combat forgetfulness and wears a watch to aid time management.

Family was an outlet, but the pandemic was there, too. When his grandfather died of COVID-19, Pujols insisted on handling the embalming himself.

Last April, Pujols said he wanted to quit. A year later, he's glad he didn't. He was able to support relatives pushed out of work by the pandemic, and he's found purpose as one of New York's "last responders."

The change is apparent. A year ago, Pujols was bleary-eyed and boiling with rage. Now that he's rested, he's calmer, if not entirely at peace.

"I get recognition from the people that I help, but not appreciation from the public, I feel," he said.

"We get left out often in the regular news when it comes to, 'oh, thank you for all the essential workers,' and all they show are, like, hospital people."

"It breaks my heart."